Dr. M flew to the Netherlands and returned a few days later – with her 2-year visa in hand!
We continued with our Get up and Move songs on a Monday.
We supported Choc Flip Flop Day on the 17th of February – good cause to support plus the added benefit of wearing flip-flops to work!
We hosted, along with guest presenter Andrew Lenti, another well-attended (68 attendees) and informative ProThink session – Executable Plans in 2023.
MJ presented Lunch and Learn, sharing Office 365 hacks and time savers.
Ktlank Ktlank!
We finally Ktlank’d the sale of The Change Maker to a client in Events Management where we will be delivering an optimised business through the maximum use of their Microsoft products.
We have a short strategy project secured for a return client, Dr. M to deliver. Well done!!!
And for the Team:
Jeanne: What I have been up to: I’m continuing my work at Santam, mainly focussing on Data Quality and developing a data-centric culture.
What I’ve learned: I’ve learned that the storming phase of a new team can last for several months.
What I have achieved: Landing the concept that effective data quality is broader than having the technology in place – it is a mind-shift change.
MJ: My focus has been on:
1) Masana
2) VizPro book modernise
3) Play with AI following the YGV workshop
Marlene: Managed to secure 8 hours PrivIQ assistance to The Source to help them complete their compliance processes on PrivIQ and get them into a position to run their compliance on their own. Also, have Magnascape on the horizon where we assist ad hoc on PrivIQ.
Vincent: I wrapped up phase 1 with our Data Privacy Client in the States. I then went into a series of strategy and planning sessions wherein we agreed to target our marketing on three products (AML, Data Privacy and the ChangeMaker).
It’s also Annual Financial Statements time so I’ve been getting Trial Balances together and dealing with the auditors. Also, finally got one of our clients in events management to sign a proposal for an aspect of The Change Maker which MJ is executing in March–May.
Waiting in anticipation for our client in the manufacturing industry to pay the deposit on their OKR project where we will also train them to use Presto.
On a personal note I am reading the entire collection of Sherlock Homes by Arthur Conan Doyle – and enjoying it!
Moira: I have been following up on Zoho proposals and it’s great when the client does take up the offer to connect with Vincent.
Some amazing hikes ticked off, Mont Rochelle Uitkyk trail being my favourite – time and time again! Breath-taking!
Carina: Workwise, February was a hectic month with Ingrid and I getting into the UAT stuff and Sanlam Emerging Markets, with the training implementation starting in March, which is going to be hectic, considering that we are looking at almost the whole of Africa. Looking forward to that!
Several meetings were also held with LexisNexis and exciting stuff happening with product training to start soon, and then next, the first client!
I started with Anti Money Laundering/Combating the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) posts on LinkedIn as part of the AML practice. I already did 8! At first a very daunting task, but it does get easier with time. The more I read about AML/CFT, the more interesting it becomes, and I am totally hooked!
The Marketing team also started with an e-mail sequence on Strategy, Compliance and AML that will run on a 2-weekly basis to our PNXT database. Interesting stuff happening and we are hopeful for a lot of work coming from that.
On a personal note, I finalised my Udemy course “The Project Management Course: Beginner to Project Manager”. It was very interesting, and I am thinking about a further course on PM to learn even more.
For the moment I am now contemplating what to do next, but I feel the need to really dig deep into Excel, so might subscribe to a course on Advanced Excel.
I started Charles Dickens’ biography which is a 1083 pages book. I think it is going to take some time…… Updates will be given through the next months, LOL.
I am privileged to learn a lot and finding much motivation from my colleagues at PNXT every day. Thank you to the amazing Pétanquers!
Tanya: In my personal capacity, we went to a festival early in Feb in Malmesbury which was amazing to be able to do something like that again in the open air. On the flip side, it was a difficult month with regard to health in the family, etc, but we are grateful to be through that rough patch.
With regards to my business, we signed up an amazing client who called us in a panic, went for the interview and 2 days later got a call to say we are appointed. Starting on the 1st of March, so looking forward to this new challenge.
With Petanque, the finance department is doing its best to keep everything afloat.
Annerie: I had an uneventful month – it was somehow over before I realized it began. I continue to offer system support to all SEM subsidiaries who use Lexis Nexis Bridger Insight and hope to onboard a further 3 -5 subsidiaries in the coming months while learning to be patient.
Dr. M: Been an odd month, high-velocity travel to and back from The Hague, loved being in my ‘other city' and then settled into slower days, reluctantly so. Let’s say it is a work in progress. And getting ready to learn about radiation.
Ingrid: The annual AML/CFT/CPF cycle started again in GCO. So the country Risk Assessment had to be updated which means investigating every country on earth and assessing its sanction, AML and Anti-Bribery and Corruption ratings. Headache material…
As GCO now has an AML specialist, she reviewed last year’s Static Risk Assessment and changed the entire questionnaire by creating 2 different sets to establish the inherent and residual risks. This meant redesigning and coding the new assessment which is due team focussed on to be distributed to the businesses on the 28th. I managed to finish it on Friday the 24th and have it sent off for testing. All supporting documentation still has to be completed, so things are a little hectic at the moment.
CURA user acceptance testing progressed well, and I focused on the Risk while SEM team focussed on compliance. The deadline is today (Friday 24th) and I neglected it due to the deadline on the SRA but am confident I can complete it this afternoon before midnight ticks over.
Abby: With the redesign of the PNXT website as an ongoing project, I am learning & exploring so much regarding website design, content, etc. Just putting together this feedback blog has been a new learning curve. I am very much enjoying the journey.
Peeping into March:
March is named for the Roman god of war, Mars.
While researching March, I came across this website: 31 Reasons to Celebrate in March.
And, should you follow it, you could celebrate something almost every day – from National Meatball day to Pack your lunch day to Earmuff day!
These are a few examples:
March 1: National Peanut Butter Lovers Day
March 6: National Oreo Cookie Day - The first Oreo cookie was sold on March 6, 1912, to a grocer in Hoboken, New Jersey.
And Twitter was founded in March – 21 March 2006 Jack Dorsey inaugurated the social media site with a first tweet: “just setting up my twttr” That isn’t a typo!
Back home in South Africa, the country transitions into autumn, with Human Rights day on the 21st of March.
To quote Emily Dickinson: “March is the month of expectation”
